Dog Adoptions

Yes! Dog adoptions save millions of lives each year. Unfortunately, we can't help all the animals out there that have been abandoned or abused, but give it a try by taking in one guy or gal. You'll be glad you did.

Shelters and dog rescue organizations first came into being in 1824 in England. A few very rich people decided animal welfare was a good thing and started the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals or SPCA.

At the time, animal welfare was considered a waste of time until Queen Victoria became involved and renamed the group the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. Good for her!

How did the Society get to American? A gentleman named Henry Bergh found the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, ASPCA, in 1866 in New York City. Mr. Bergh did not like the way the horses were being treated and set up the Society and the rest is history.

Onward to the late 20th century. Many animal advocates founded shelters and rescue organizations to help stray and unwanted pets. Dog adoptions increased slightly.

They tried desperately to find homes for animals and some succeeded. Despite their best intentions, in the end many pets were euthanized because the non profit shelters could not find pet parents or could not afford to house the animals.

Present day, there are well maintained shelters and rescue organizations all over the country. The Progressive Animal Welfare Society, PAWS is working hard to house and promote adoption of pets. They market the pets to the public and get to know the animal's makeup and also pre-screens potential pet parents.

You will find most shelters follow PAWS rules. Potential dog adoptions are required to fill out an extensive application to make sure the animals are going to a good home and will not be abused or abandoned.

Rescue organizations and shelters are seeing an increase in pure breeds at their facilities. This is largely due to the popularity of some breeds in movies and the media.

People think it will be great to have a dog like so and so and buy one before doing their research. Yes, I keep stressing this and will continue to do so.

And when the owners find that the pet is too much to handle or not what they expect, the animal is abandoned or given to a shelter. SHAME!

Good news! Many No-Kill shelters are on the rise but so is over population of these facilities.

If you have any shelters in your area, please support them. Give a monetary donation, blankets, food, etc. and above all, if you are looking for a dog to adopt, please save a life.

By the way, a little girl is trying to help the shelter dogs by getting food for the animals through clicking to her site, freekibble.com. Please do so. It doesn't cost you anything. A applaud this young lady doing what she can to help unfortunate pets who don't have a loving home.

Here is our rescue dog, Lady. She was found wandering around town with her sister and placed in the animal shelter. Just one look at her and we couldn't resist.

We had just lost our 11 year old Collie to cancer and Lady became a wonderful addition to our family.